


Too Late

by DoMeCarisi (orphan_account)



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Angst, Barisi - Freeform, Carmisi, Drabble, F/M, M/M, Pre-Barisi, completely fucking pointless, one sided pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-10
Updated: 2017-12-10
Packaged: 2019-02-12 19:50:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12967116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/DoMeCarisi





	Too Late

Rafael’s concentration was broken by the sound of conversation just outside his door. 

He looked up from his paperwork, peering through the cracked blinds. He would recognize that voice anywhere. 

Sure enough, there was Sonny, standing at Carmen’s desk. Jacket off and slung over one arm. Hair slightly loose, coming undone from what was likely a very busy day. 

Sonny would normally let him know before stopping by the office, and it was getting late. But he would be lying if he said he wasn’t pleased by the unexpected visit. 

Rafael trained his face back into a neutral expression, suppressing the smile that had naturally appeared when he first caught a glimpse of him. 

He resented how juvenile it felt. The flutter in his chest and the tingle up his spine, prompting him to sit up straighter in his chair. 

Whatever this feeling was, he wasn’t ready to act on it. At least not yet. 

But he couldn’t deny there was something there. A spark. A current. Something that kept their eyes locked on one another, shoulders close. It was unexpected and exciting, and Rafael secretly thrilled at every opportunity he had to be near him. 

But as the minutes passed and Sonny made no move to enter, Rafael grew curious. Peeking over his papers and through the half-open blinds, he tried to figure out what was happening. 

Sonny was still there, but he was standing with his hands planted on Carmen’s desk, leaning down close to talk to her. Flashing that big, easy, dimpled smile. And she was looking back up at him, returning his smile with a laugh. Her body turned toward his. 

Rafael felt his chest tighten as he watched, feeling more and more like an unwelcome observer of something private. Intimate. 

He turned away, trying to focus on the words on the page in front of him. A plea deal he needed to finish tonight. But there was no way he could concentrate with Carmen’s voice and Sonny’s laugh just a few feet away. 

Rafael fidgeted impatiently, rearranging items on his desk, when there was a knock. 

“Mr. Barba,” Carmen started as she opened the door, leaning forward into the office. “I finished preparing the pleadings for tomorrow. Would it be alright if I take off now?” 

“Oh, right, your dinner plans. Of course, Carmen,” he replied. “And you can send Carisi in now, too.” 

Carmen’s smiled faltered. 

“Oh, uh, I’m not sure if…” she trailed off as she turned her head back to Sonny, who stepped forward into the doorway. 

“That’s okay, Rafael.” 

_Rafael_. He still wasn’t used to hearing Sonny call him that. 

“This was a personal visit,” he continued, his gaze turning to Carmen. A small blush spreading over his cheeks. 

The realization landed on Rafael’s chest with a thud. 

He turned to the stack of papers he had been reading earlier and leafed through them, desperate to conceal his disappointment.

“In that case, be sure to lock up when you leave. I’ll be here for awhile,” Rafael replied, shoulders turned and eyes averted, signaling that the conversation was over. 

When his door was finally shut and he was alone again, he looked up one more time, through the crack in his blinds, to see them walking together toward the elevator. Sonny’s hand placed firmly on the small of Carmen’s back. 

Rafael let out a long exhale, looking down at his desk and trying to make sense of what he was feeling. 

Had he been imagining it? Misreading the signs? 

Had he mistaken admiration for affection? Professional friendship for something more? 

Or was he simply too late? 

Heart sinking, he stood to close the blinds before returning to his desk. 

Whatever it was, it didn’t matter now.


End file.
